This interview was featured in Spring 2025 issue of Intersections, the iSchool's alumni magazine.
Of the seven Cordells, you’ll find three of them on campus with connections to the iSchool: Ryan is a faculty member; Evie, an iSchool alum, University of Illinois librarian, and faculty member; and Cadence, an MSLIS student.
Evie and Ryan, married for 25 years, have five children— Cadence, 24; Emerson Lynn, 21; Rorik and Saige, 17; and Jude, 13. Rounding out their family are Millie, a twelve-year-old rescue pup who was featured in a children’s book by the couple, and three-year-old corgi Margo. The family enjoys playing board games, hiking, and traveling together.
Why did you choose to go into LIS?
Ryan: First off, Evie always insists I am #notalibrarian. I started my career in an English department, but my research intersects the humanities and information sciences. I try to help students draw connections between historical and contemporary technologies—letterpress printing, for instance—to better understand information history, and how print culture still shapes digital texts and computational interfaces. A rich, interdisciplinary community like the iSchool is the perfect place to bridge both periods and methodologies.
Evie: I went to college a little later in life. Cadence was in grade school while I was an undergrad in religious studies at the University of Virginia (Ryan was working on his PhD program at the same time). Because I enjoyed spending time in the library and doing research, I knew that I wanted to pursue LIS. After wrapping up a few adventures moving around the US and to Germany, I applied and was accepted into the iSchool’s Leep [MSLIS online] program.
What do you remember about your parents’ LIS conversations when you were growing up?
Cadence: My mom went through the Leep program while I was in high school, so a lot of my memories of their LIS conversations were from that time. The one that sticks with me the most is of them jokingly arguing over which citation manager I should use: Zotero or Mendeley. (I ended up being a Zotero user—sorry, Mom). They also had a running joke about whose career path I’d end up following: a digital humanities professor (Dad) or a librarian (Mom). So, I split the difference and ended up doing both!
How did your childhood experiences influence your decision to attend U. of I.? Your graduate pathway?
Cadence: My undergraduate experience working at the Mount Holyoke College library led me to consider graduate school, but it was my mom’s experience that pushed me to apply to the iSchool. Even then, I don’t think we expected to all end up here at the same time!
Have you taken any classes with your dad as a professor?
Cadence: Nope! That would get complicated, especially when it comes to grading and fairness. I’ve stopped by his printing press a few times, and we’ll chat about what he’s teaching in class when I visit on the weekends though.
How do you feel about Cadence pursing a degree in the same field as you and as a U. of I. student?
Ryan: We joke that Cadence has been an academic since she was a toddler, but it was clear early on that she had the curiosity and focus to follow that path. The only real debate was whether she would get her MSLIS or a PhD in a humanities field. What we couldn’t have predicted was that just before she started applying to graduate school, we would both land jobs at the U. of I. (and I would switch fields), so that when she did apply, she’d be applying to MY academic unit! I’m pretty proud that she’ll graduate from the #1 LIS program in the country!
Evie: I am so excited and proud of her. I like to think that I won the ‘bet’ when she chose librarianship over becoming a professor. Having her at the U. of I. has been a wonderful experience. I don’t think many parents get to witness their children grow into adulthood and truly mature as individuals in this way. It’s been amazing to watch her grow as a person and a scholar.
What are your hopes for your daughter in this field?
Ryan: Cadence has found library work rewarding. I hope that she will get to do work that supports communities that are important to her, and that she’ll continue to find problems and projects that challenge her intellectually while making an impact in the world.
Evie: Echoing what Ryan said, I hope that she will have the opportunity to engage in work that supports the communities important to her, such as her current efforts to make library resources more accessible. I’m so excited to see where she goes next. I know that the library that hires her will be incredibly fortunate.